PMID- 38084167
OWN - NLM
STAT- PubMed-not-MEDLINE
LR  - 20231212
IS  - 2168-8184 (Print)
IS  - 2168-8184 (Electronic)
IS  - 2168-8184 (Linking)
VI  - 15
IP  - 11
DP  - 2023 Nov
TI  - Development of Asthma-Like Symptoms After COVID-19: A Cross-Sectional Study in 
      Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
PG  - e48591
LID - 10.7759/cureus.48591 [doi]
LID - e48591
AB  - Background Coronaviruses are viral agents that commonly infect animals, but have 
      the ability to cause respiratory illness in humans, exemplified by the ongoing 
      novel coronavirus outbreak (COVID-19). Due to the sparse literature on the 
      effects of COVID-19 on the respiratory system, and the possible development of 
      persistent asthma-like symptoms after infection, this cross-sectional analysis 
      was performed in order to compare the clinical and investigative parameters 
      between post-COVID patients and asthmatic patients. Methods A retrospective 
      cross-sectional study was conducted on patients with prior history of COVID-19 
      infection that presented to the pulmonology or respiratory outpatient clinics 
      with asthma-like symptoms and were subsequently compared to known asthmatic 
      patients with absent history of prior COVID-19 infection, in order to evaluate 
      the degree of similarity between both cohorts. In this study, asthma-like 
      symptoms were defined as: (i) cough, (ii) wheezing, (iii) chest tightness, and 
      (iv) shortness of breath. Moreover, comparisons of investigative parameters were 
      also performed, including (i) fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO), (ii) serum 
      immunoglobulin E (IgE), (iii) absolute eosinophil counts, and (iv) qualitative 
      spirometry results. All statistical analyses were conducted via chi-squared 
      testing for categorical variables, and independent t-test for continuous 
      variables. Results In this study, there were a total of 76 patients included that 
      conformed to the eligibility criteria, including 39 patients with post-COVID 
      symptoms with absent history of asthma or other respiratory illnesses, and 37 
      patients with known asthma with absent history of prior COVID-19 infection or 
      other respiratory illnesses. Overall, this study revealed the similarities 
      between both cohorts with respect to the incidence of cough, chest tightness, and 
      shortness of breath. Moreover, there were similarities between the serum IgE and 
      spirometry results. However, there were differences within the complaint of 
      wheeze, FeNO values, and eosinophil counts between both cohorts. The placement of 
      post-COVID patients on bronchodilator therapy involving inhaled corticosteroids 
      and long-acting beta-agonists revealed improvement in all follow-up patients. 
      Conclusion In conclusion, there was considerable similarity in the complaint of 
      asthma-like symptoms after COVID-19 infection, associated with an improvement 
      after the use of bronchodilator therapy, indicating the potential role of 
      anti-asthma therapy (e.g., bronchodilator therapy) in managing post-COVID 
      asthma-like symptoms. In order to validate our conclusion, further comprehensive 
      studies with robust methodologies and larger sample populations are encouraged.
CI  - Copyright (c) 2023, Husain et al.
FAU - Husain, Syed Arshad
AU  - Husain SA
AD  - Department of Pulmonology, King's College Hospital London, Dubai, ARE.
FAU - Rategh, Amirarshia
AU  - Rategh A
AD  - Faculty of Science, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, CAN.
FAU - Larik, Muhammad Omar
AU  - Larik MO
AD  - Department of Medicine, Dow International Medical College, Karachi, PAK.
FAU - D'Cruz, Leon G
AU  - D'Cruz LG
AD  - Department of Research, Portsmouth Hospitals NHS Trust, Portsmouth, GBR.
FAU - John, Jean Mary
AU  - John JM
AD  - Department of Pulmonology, King's College Hospital London, Dubai, ARE.
FAU - Mahboub, Bassam
AU  - Mahboub B
AD  - Department of Pulmonology, Rashid Hospital, Dubai, ARE.
LA  - eng
PT  - Journal Article
DEP - 20231109
PL  - United States
TA  - Cureus
JT  - Cureus
JID - 101596737
PMC - PMC10710560
OTO - NOTNLM
OT  - asthma
OT  - coronavirus
OT  - covid-19
OT  - post-covid asthma
OT  - post-covid effects
OT  - respiratory system
COIS- The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.
EDAT- 2023/12/12 06:42
MHDA- 2023/12/12 06:43
PMCR- 2023/11/09
CRDT- 2023/12/12 03:36
PHST- 2023/11/09 00:00 [accepted]
PHST- 2023/12/12 06:43 [medline]
PHST- 2023/12/12 06:42 [pubmed]
PHST- 2023/12/12 03:36 [entrez]
PHST- 2023/11/09 00:00 [pmc-release]
AID - 10.7759/cureus.48591 [doi]
PST - epublish
SO  - Cureus. 2023 Nov 9;15(11):e48591. doi: 10.7759/cureus.48591. eCollection 2023 
      Nov.